Dagger handle

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This kris hilt depicts Batara Bayu, the Hindu deity Bhima's spiritual mentor, an auspicious motif for a dagger, as one of his roles is to ward off evil and offer protection to the keeper of the weapon. Dressed in sumptuously detailed textiles, he holds a kris dagger and is seated on a rocky foliate landscape, enriched with precious stones and inset with elliptical pieces of rock crystal.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art